Landmark permit issued for 710 MADISON AVENUE, MANHATTAN in UPPER EAST SIDE

Landmark building permit details

Location 710 MADISON AVENUE, MANHATTAN
Issue date January 11, 2008
(?) COFA COFA 08-6282

Certificates of Appropriateness (COFAs) are issued by the landmarks commission when it approves such things as building construction, demolition and visible additions to historic property. The certificates require a public hearing and the entire process can take several months.

Docket 08-4991
Historic district Upper East Side
Landmark name N/A
Expiration date December 18, 2013
Text
Pursuant to Section 25-307 of the Administrative Code of the City of New York, the Landmarks Preservation
Commission, at the Public Meeting of December 18, 2007, following the Public Meeting and Public Hearing of
November 13, 2007, voted to approve the proposed work at the subject premises, as put forward in your
application completed October 18, 2007. This approval will expire December 18, 2013.

The proposed work, as approved, consists of the removal of storefronts and first and second floors; the
construction of a new storefront at the Madison Avenue and East 63rd Street façades, featuring bronze framing,
limestone cladding, large glass display windows at the first and second floors, a deep projecting stone cornice;
and the installation of signage embossed on the bronze spandrel separating the first and second floors in each bay
and on the cornice on the Madison Avenue façade ("Graff").

The proposal, as originally presented, consisted of a modern cornice, three bays, featuring tripartite glazing
within two bays on the Madison Avenue façade, a bronze horizontal reveal separating the first and second floors;
and embossed lettering in the dark bronze panels at the second floor ("Graff"). The proposal was shown in
existing conditions photographs; color rendering of proposed storefront; and drawings labeled Proposed
Elevations, 1st. Floor Plan, 2nd. Floor Plan, Building Section and Wall Section, dated November 13, 2007, all
prepared by Peter Marino + Assoc Architects, submitted as components of the application, and presented at the
Public Meeting and Public Hearing.

In reviewing this proposal, the Commission notes that the Upper East Side Historic District designation report
states that 710 Madison Avenue is an Italianate/neo-Grec style rowhouse designed by Gage Inslee, built in 1871
and altered in 1915 to accommodate a storefront at the first and second floors.
With regard to this proposal, the Commission finds that the historic cornices are remnants of the historic
storefronts which no longer exist and they will not have any meaningful relationship with any new storefront
infill, therefore, their removal will not eliminate significant features and will allow for a new cohesive storefront
design; that the proposed storefront openings will maintain a rhythm which relates to the storefronts on Madison
Avenue, and to the residential scale of the side street; that the proposed design maintains transparency at the
commercial base, which is a significant feature of the commercial streetscape in this historic district; that the
configuration of the storefronts, featuring a horizontal division that recalls the historic separation between the first
and second floors, will retain the rhythm and scale of the streetscape; that the size of the proposed window
openings will provide a transition between the commercial corner building and the residential building on the side
street; that the design of the storefront cornice will provide the depth and articulation typically found on
storefront cornices;
that the limestone cladding at the two-story storefront will relate well to facade materials found on buildings in
this historic district; and that the size and type of the proposed signs will be in keeping with the commercial
character of Madison Avenue; and that the proposed work will not detract from the architectural and historic
character of the Upper East Side Historic District. Based on these findings, the Commission determined the
proposed work to be appropriate to the building and the historic district, and voted to approve it.

However, in voting to grant this approval, the Commission stipulated that a set of unmounted copies of the
presentation drawings and two final signed and sealed copies of the Department of Buildings filing drawings for
the approved work be submitted to the staff of the Commission for review and approval.

Subsequently, on December 21, 2007, the Landmarks Preservation Commission received final drawings labeled
PROPOSED ELEVATIONS, 1ST. FLOOR PLAN, 2ND FLOOR PLAN, BUILDING SECTION, and WALL
SECTIONS, dated December 18, 2007, prepared by Peter Marino and Associates. Accordingly, staff reviewed
the drawings and found that the proposal approved by the Commission has been maintained. Based on this and
the above findings, the drawings are marked approved with a perforated seal, and Certificate of Appropriateness
08-5465 m is being issued.

This permit is issued on the basis of the building and site conditions described in the application and disclosed
during the review process. By accepting this permit, the applicant agrees to notify the Commission if the actual
building or site conditions vary or if original or historic building fabric is discovered. The Commission reserves
the right to amend or revoke this permit, upon written notice to the applicant, in the event that the actual building
or site conditions are materially different from those described in the application or disclosed during the review
process.

All approved drawings are marked approved by the Commission with a perforated seal indicating the date of
approval. The work is limited to what is contained in the perforated documents. Other work or amendments to
this filing must be reviewed and approved separately. The applicant is hereby put on notice that performing or
maintaining any work not explicitly authorized by this permit may make the applicant liable for criminal and/or
civil penalties, including imprisonment and fines. This letter constitutes the permit; a copy must be prominently
displayed at the site while work is in progress. Please direct inquiries to Mishael Shabrami.




Robert B. Tierney
Chair

PLEASE NOTE: PERFORATED DRAWINGS AND A COPY OF THIS PERMIT HAVE BEEN SENT TO:
Ross Moskowitz, Strook & Strook & Lavan

cc: Jared Knowles, Deputy Director of Preservation/LPC


PAGE 2
Issued: 1/11/08
DOCKET: 08-4991

Added to EveryBlock on February 1, 2008.